My experience is that most of the things you can do with custom brushes can also usually be done with any of the basic brushes, even sometimes more quickly.
I've actually spent a fair bit of time experimenting with making/using custom brushes, but I find myself discovering with increased frequency that I only use two or three in any given piece.
In the past, I'd spent a lot of time making a super textured brush that would help make things like dirt or rocks easier, only to find that once I'd made one, or downloaded one, I would sit there sometimes and redo the same large stroke over and over again so the "randomness" and texture landed correctly. I'd actually get the job done faster if I'd just used a basic brush on a super small setting and put in all the randomness by hand, with intention. I found that this also makes it easier for a piece to appear more cohesive, and confident.
At the end of the day, I'd have to say it's more important to learn how to use brush presets/settings than it is finding actual custom brush graphics. Understanding how to use flow/opacity pressure settings, angle tied to brush direction, various jitter settings, etc, can make a huge difference. Though again, you can paint something awesome with basic round + simple pressure sensitivity settings, and many people do.
i use the regular round brush and the chalk brush for the most part. Sometimes a square brush. Not big into making custom brushes... but at the same time i am no concept artist.
Other than those I use the default brushes, lots of lasso, masking and airbrushing. I have a few special texture brushes I can't remember where I got, but they make a big difference.
Check these out: http://www.pandemoniumart.net/brushes/ A collection from some of the top concept artists and digital painters. It all depends on the style, there's a big difference between painting environments or painting characters.
This thread is freakin old, but, no harm in updating right? http://soldatnordsken.deviantart.com/art/Concept-Art-Brush-Pack-630223797 He's got some pretty good brushes along with 3 tutorials on youtube that are fairly informative in how to use some of the brushes... nothing is better than an artist who teaches you how to use his tools, or at least the basics.
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I've actually spent a fair bit of time experimenting with making/using custom brushes, but I find myself discovering with increased frequency that I only use two or three in any given piece.
In the past, I'd spent a lot of time making a super textured brush that would help make things like dirt or rocks easier, only to find that once I'd made one, or downloaded one, I would sit there sometimes and redo the same large stroke over and over again so the "randomness" and texture landed correctly. I'd actually get the job done faster if I'd just used a basic brush on a super small setting and put in all the randomness by hand, with intention. I found that this also makes it easier for a piece to appear more cohesive, and confident.
At the end of the day, I'd have to say it's more important to learn how to use brush presets/settings than it is finding actual custom brush graphics. Understanding how to use flow/opacity pressure settings, angle tied to brush direction, various jitter settings, etc, can make a huge difference. Though again, you can paint something awesome with basic round + simple pressure sensitivity settings, and many people do.
Try all of those.
I use a hard round with size and opacity pressure and a rectangle one set up the same way.
Other than those I use the default brushes, lots of lasso, masking and airbrushing. I have a few special texture brushes I can't remember where I got, but they make a big difference.
Very solid concept art application, free as well. It has a great brush engine.
Posted to follow.
^__^
http://soldatnordsken.deviantart.com/art/Concept-Art-Brush-Pack-630223797
He's got some pretty good brushes along with 3 tutorials on youtube that are fairly informative in how to use some of the brushes... nothing is better than an artist who teaches you how to use his tools, or at least the basics.